Booster Seat help PLEASE!!!!

I need some help finding 2 boosters for a friend. She has a small 2 door 1991 Honda Accord. It has a small back seat. She has 3 children ages: 3 1/2 years old, 5 years old & a 9 year old. She needs a High back & a no back. Hopefully there are some narrow ones.

The 3 1/2 year old is tiny! He weighs about 30lbs, maybe a little more, & is barely on the top slots of the Scenera, as in just over the next to top slots. He has about 1 1/2 to 2 good inches of growth room to go. I know he could more than likely be RF & I have said as much, but I think the most important part is to not push here. She is doing GREAT to still have him harnessed with where we live. He fits well & I feel is old enough to be FF. He is properly tightened & strapped in. However he is not top tethered, but will be soon as she has the parts number & is going to order an anchor for the middle seat!

The 5 year old is about average to maybe a little on the bigger side & weighs about 45lbs. She is currently in a backless, but I told my friend that she NEEDS to be in a High Backed.

The 9 year old looks average to small to me, not sure on his weight. He is in nothing & the belt is a HORRIBLE fit. I told her he needs a backless. He will have enough head support I am pretty sure. I was thinking she could pass her DD's backless to him, but it is a little over 5 years old & she said in not so great of shape. So she is willing to replace it.

So here is the delima. She needs to be able to fit 3 accross the back. She has the 3 year old in the Scenara in the middle as it is lap only. I told her he needed to be there so no one else would not have to ride there as it was unsafe. She needs to fit a booster on each side.

So does anyone know any inexpensive High Backs & Backless boosters that will fit? Isn't the Scenera pretty narrow & work well for 3 accross in small cars? Does anyone know if there is any chance that a High Back Turbo Booster & a backless Turbo will fit on each side? Or is this going to be try & find out kind of thing?

Also what other inexpensive narrow booster seats are out there?? Anyone looking to sell a Fisher Price Safe Voyage Booster??

I'm afraid the TB is probably going to be the most narrow option out there For the backless does anyone know if the new Harmony Juvenile at WM is more narrow than the TB? Or for that matter what about the high back? It *looks* wider but that doesn't mean it is.

I did a 3 across in a 2 door Accord last week.

A Turbo is NOT going to work. The way the back rest of the vehicle seat is shaped does not work with the TB at all. It pushes the booster several inches into the middle position. A Cosco Highrise backless works better and by default would make the Cosco Protek highback work too. (same basic shell with armrest extensions and a back) I don't know how well either of those would puzzle with the Scenera though. If she is getting a tether put in, a Ride Safer Travel Vest in the middle with the lap belt and top tether for the 3yo would probably give enough room for the 9yo with a booster to sit beside. As a last resort, the 3yo in the front (will need to use a belt shortening clip), preferably rfing with the car seat braced on the dash, is a better solution than having the 9yo in just the seat belt.

My first thought was a Parkway and a Clek Olli, but that's not exactly cheap.

As far at the Harmony backless, people have compared it to the Combi Dakota so I suspect its a bit wider, but I haven't seen one IRL.

Are there any clearanced old style PWs left?

Not sure about the Vivo either but I know its reasonably priced.

In any event, whatever seats she ends up with may puzzle better with the scenera rf'ing.

Sorry I guess I'm not much help!

Although it's certainly preferable to have a high back for the five year old, the most important thing is belt fit and being able to get all three kids safely in the back seat. Do the outboard positions have head rests? If not, are the nine year old's ears contained within the seatback?

Obviously, if money were not an object, the most ideal solution would be a Radian rear facing in the middle and two Parkway SGs outboard. My guess is if she's driving a 18 year old car, though, she's not going to drop 500 dollars on car seats.

The most COST EFFECTIVE solution would be the Scenera rear facing, the 5 year old in a Graco Turbo and the 9 year old in a Cosco High Rise or similar. If you cannot get her to turn the Scenera rear facing, I would get high-rises for both the older kids.

Yes, the 9 year olds ears are contained within the headrest. She will be putting him in a backless & I am quite sure that he will still have enough head support as he is several inches below the seat.

So you would be okay with the 5 year old in a backless??

The problem is not that she will NOT pay for seats, it is that she absolutly can not afford them right now. She bought this car b/c it was cheap, she knew the original owner, & her car had broke down. So if she DOES have to go with cheapy seats right now, the chances are she will purchase better seats when finaces straighen out or she gets her income tax money.

As for the Turbo, I was afraid of that. We're going to go soon to look at them to see. The major problem here is that she has very little money right now. They're having some problems with money, so paying alot of money is out of the option. She is planning on buying a new seat for the 3 year old 1st of the year, but can not afford it right now.

So does anyone know if a Big Kid high back might fit? I guess we're going to have to go play. I will take a take measure & measure the hip room in the back & then the seats we look at. I think we're also going to Babies R Us, so we will be able to try some in her car!

Thanks. I was thinking this might turn out to be an issue.

My Target has all sorts of Turbos (high back & no back) on clearance. The no backs werer $16 last time I checked.

Someone was selling a FPSVD on the swap. It has a very small base, and might allow the other boosters to have more room to buckly in?

I have a Vivo if you need measurements.

Sorry if this isn't much help.

Mommy2Marcus said:

So you would be okay with the 5 year old in a backless??

T.

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It's not that I'm 'ok' with a five year old in a backless, it's that you have to tailor your recommendations and your perception to the reality of a particular parent's situation. Coalitions don't have Radians and PW SGs waiting to be given away. She can't afford to buy them. They can't afford a different vehicle.

The SAFEST thing that she can do, is have all three kids in the back, and make sure that the seatbelts will fit these kids properly. A Cosco High Rise will do that. Would it be as nice as a well-fitting high back or a harnessed seat? Of course not. Is it better than no booster, or an expired booster? Absolutely.

I've put three year olds in belt positioning boosters (dorel combination seats, no less) and just turned one year old's in forward facing harnessed seats, because it was the best solution to a particular problem. Best practice is not always possible, and finances tend to be the biggest constraint.

jujumum said:

My Target has all sorts of Turbos (high back & no back) on clearance. The no backs werer $16 last time I checked.

Someone was selling a FPSVD on the swap. It has a very small base, and might allow the other boosters to have more room to buckly in?

I have a Vivo if you need measurements.

Sorry if this isn't much help.

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Thanks! This does help. Can you measure the Vivo for me?? That would be awsome if you could & would do that for me. I am going to try to find an off day we have together this week & see if we can go looking.

Maedze said:

It's not that I'm 'ok' with a five year old in a backless, it's that you have to tailor your recommendations and your perception to the reality of a particular parent's situation. Coalitions don't have Radians and PW SGs waiting to be given away. She can't afford to buy them. They can't afford a different vehicle.

The SAFEST thing that she can do, is have all three kids in the back, and make sure that the seatbelts will fit these kids properly. A Cosco High Rise will do that. Would it be as nice as a well-fitting high back or a harnessed seat? Of course not. Is it better than no booster, or an expired booster? Absolutely.

I've put three year olds in belt positioning boosters (dorel combination seats, no less) and just turned one year old's in forward facing harnessed seats, because it was the best solution to a particular problem. Best practice is not always possible, and finances tend to be the biggest constraint.

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Thanks Maedza. I know the situation is not ideal, but I also know that something is better than nothing. I am thinking about offering to buy her the backless, so she can have a little more money to go for the high back. So that will more than likely help. I know it is not much, but it will help her some.

I really do appreciate the help!

The Vivo is hollow molded plastic - like a regent, kwim?

The very back of the Vivo, where the seat & back touch the vehicle seat is only 14" wide. But, the seat bows out in the middle and towards the front, so the ultimate width is about 17 to 17.5" at the widest point. The exterior depth is about 14" to 15" and the interior seat depth is about 11-12" (it is hard to measure, since it curves).

The Vivo is a great seat, but my 10 year old son found it really difficult to buckle himself since the seat belt guides are kind of narrow and covered in fabric.

I hope this helps!

My Big Lots has Highrises for $12 and Proteks for $25.

jujumum said:

The Vivo is hollow molded plastic - like a regent, kwim?

The very back of the Vivo, where the seat & back touch the vehicle seat is only 14" wide. But, the seat bows out in the middle and towards the front, so the ultimate width is about 17 to 17.5" at the widest point. The exterior depth is about 14" to 15" and the interior seat depth is about 11-12" (it is hard to measure, since it curves).

The Vivo is a great seat, but my 10 year old son found it really difficult to buckle himself since the seat belt guides are kind of narrow and covered in fabric.

I hope this helps!

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Thanks! That is awsome! I will measure her seat back & see if it is possible that it will fit.

safeinthecar said:

My Big Lots has Highrises for $12 and Proteks for $25.

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Thanks for this as well. I am not sure where the closest Big Lots to me is, but I will find out & we will go check it out!